Blast from the Past (Essential Collection - Patsy Cline)

Name: DavyMichelle

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Product:	Essential Collection - Patsy Cline
Date:	24/04/08 (50 review reads)
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Patsy Cline is one of my old favourites when it comes to Country and Western music. She was called Virginia Patterson Henderson when she was born in 1932 but this was later changed to Patsy Cline. In fact she was actually called Ginny by her family and friends when she was little. A throat infection during her childhood is what left her with her distinctive, instantly recognisable country singing voice that she later became renown for.


Patsy started her singing career in the church and taught herself to play piano. She had something called 'perfect pitch' which means she could sing any note she heard straight back at you accurately. It also meant she could teach herself to play songs she knew on instruments by sound alone and she didn't need to read music. 'Perfect pitch' is most common in native black Africans but occasionally the gift falls to others.


Along with church singing, Patsy started to sing at talent shows and even landed a spot singing on local radio after she begged the DJ to let her have a go. She sang in all kinds of clubs locally too which helped her to build a solid foundation for her career. She was still known as Ginny Henderson at this point though. It wasn't until she married Gerald Cline in 1953 that her stage name Patsy Cline was born.


From there, Patsy became a regular on the Town and Country show, an American country music showcase. She was then signed up in 1955 by Four Star Records who she went onto record over fifty songs with. Patsy wasn't allowed much input in the songs she sang so it wasn't a great career move for her. It did at least start to really put her on the map though even if she didn't really achieve fame during her time with the label.


Finally, Patsy's contract ended with Four Star Records in 1960 and Patsy changed to Decca Records where she would start to find real fame. She became a pop singer for Decca Records and moved away from the country music Four Star Records had made her sing though there was always a strong country undertone to her pop records. "Crazy" is probably one of her best known songs today that demonstrates this country pop success. She's also quite well known for "I Fall to Pieces", "Sweet Dreams of You" and "Have You Ever Been Lonely".


Patsy went onto to have a couple of children with her new husband Charlie Dick (she divorced Gerald Cline in 1957 but kept his surname). She toured the world with her twangy, country pop vocals and appeared on thousands of radio and television shows throughout her successful career. Sadly though, aged just 30, she died in a plane crash in 1963 near to Camden in Tennessee. I guess it's true what they say, the good really do die young.


I like to think her legacy lives on though, as does her remarkable voice.

Summary: A Country Legend